The Rockies decided to build their franchise around Troy Tulowitzki. Colorado awarded him with a seven-year $134 million extension.

Teaming up with Tulo is Carlos Gonzalez. He contended for a Triple Crown for a majority of the season.

Pitching-wise, Ubaldo Jimenez emerged as a Cy Young candidate.

INFIELD

C- Chris Iannetta- 7

1B- Todd Helton- 7.25

2B- Jose Lopez- 7

SS- Troy Tulowitzki- 9

3B- Ian Stewart- 7

Chris Ianetta (28) 188 AB .197 BA 37 R 9 HR 27 RBI 1 SB

Ianetta enters a crucial season in his career. He showed promise in 2008, but it’s been nothing but downhill since. With Miguel Olivo departing via free agency, the Rockies catching options are Ianneta and an unproven Jose Mirales.

Todd Helton (37) 398 AB .256 BA 48 R 8 HR 37 RBI 0 SB

Helton continues to lose bat speed and power with age, but he’s still very selective and smart at the plate. Again, because he’s older, his range in the field has declined, although he still has a solid glove.

Jose Lopez (27) 593 AB .239 BA 49 R 10 HR 58 RBI 4 SB

Lopez has been fairly consistent throughout his career, but last year was ugly. His big problem, it seemed like he tried to pull everything. The Rockies will turn to speedster Eric Young Jr. if Lopez continues to struggle.

Troy Tulowitzki (26) 470 AB .315 BA 89 R 27 HR 95 RBI 11 SB

Tulo’s September was unprecedented—15 home runs, 40 RBI and a .322 batting average. It’s nitpicking, but it’s a dilemma, while he can get very hot for long stretches, he can also get cold for long stretches. There needs to be more consistency on his part. In the field, he has great range and can make any throw from the hole.

Ian Stewart (26) 386 AB .256 BA 54 R 18 HR 61 RBI 5 SB

Stewart is a home run or strikeout hitter. He causes the most damage when the ball is down. The Rockies went out and signed 2010 AL All-Star Ty Wiggington. Wiggington can play third, second and first. He’ll get his share of playing time.

OUTFIELD

LF- Carlos Gonzalez- 8.5

CF- Dexter Fowler- 7.25

RF- Seth Smith- 7

Carlos Gonzalez (25) 587 AB .336 BA 111 R 34 HR 117 RBI 26 SB

Gonzalez showed glimpses of his brilliance in the 2009 NLDS against Philadelphia where he hit .588 (10-for-17). He then carried that momentum and had a huge 2010 campaign. He has a very quick and balanced swing. He lifts up his front leg, keeps his hands back and launches the baseball.

Dexter Fowler (25) 439 AB .260 BA 73 R 6 HR 36 RBI 13 SB

In order for Fowler to be a successful leadoff hitter, he needs to cut down on the strikeouts. He has incredible speed and is very lethal on the basepaths. His speed transfers into the outfield as he closes on balls quickly.

STARTING PITCHING

1. Ubaldo Jimenez- 8.25

2. Jorge De La Rosa- 7.25

3. Jason Hammel- 7

4. Jhoulys Chacin- 7.25

5. Aaron Cook- 7

Ubaldo Jimenez (27) 222 IP 19-8 2.88 ERA 1.15 WHIP 214 K

Jimenez was an astonishing 15-1 at the All-Star break, but he hit a rough patch down the stretch which took him out of Cy Young consideration. His fastball is arguably the best in baseball He throws a four-seam and two-seamer. His four-seamer peaks at 100 mph, while his two-seamer runs and sinks across the plate. When he can throw his secondary pitches for strikes, he’s nearly unhittable.

Jorge De La Rosa (30) 122 IP 8-7 4.22 ERA 1.31 WHIP 113 K

De La Rose is injury prone, pitching more than 130 innings in a season just once. He missed substantial time last year due to a left finger injury. He’s at his best when he gets his breaking pitches going.

Jason Hammel (28) 178 IP 10-9 4.81 ERA 1.40 WHIP 141 K

Hammel doesn’t have the best stuff, but he locates his fastball to both sides of the plate fairly well. He changes the speed and shape of his curveball and slider and has a hard changeup.

Jhoulys Chacin (23) 137 IP 9-11 3.28 ERA 1.27 WHIP 138 K

Chacin had a solid rookie campaign and is still developing. He gets good movement with his fastball, and his slider has a late, quick bite to it.

Aaron Cook (32) 128 IP 6-8 5.07 ERA 1.56 WHIP 62 K

Cook is a groundball pitcher. His sinker has great movement, and he keeps hitters off balance with his curveball.

BULLPEN

RP- Matt Lindstrom- 7.25

RP- Rafael Betancourt- 7.25

RP- Franklin Morales- 7

SU- Matt Belisle- 7.25

CP- Huston Street- 7.25

Matt Lindstrom, Franklin Morales, Rafael Betancourt

The Rockies can have a rather dominant bullpen if these three can put it together. Morales and Lindstrom are strikeout machines, but they’re also walking machines.

Matt Belisle (30) 92 IP 7-5 1 SV 2.93 ERA 1.09 WHIP 91 K

It looks like Belisle may have finally “figured it out” after the age of 30. We’ll see if he can build on a solid 2010 campaign.

Huston Street (27) 47 IP 4-4 20 SV 3.62 ERA 1.06 WHIP 45 K

Street has a funky delivery, but it gets the job down. He gets good movement with his fastball, has a sweeping slider and a good changeup.